ESD claim pending because employer not responding - what's next?

This happened to me last year! The law requires ESD to make a determination within a reasonable time even if your employer doesn't respond. In my case, after about 4 weeks of 'pending employer response' status, ESD went ahead and approved my claim. They basically decided that if the employer doesn't contest it within the timeframe, they default to accepting your version of events. Have you tried calling ESD to ask about the status? That's what I did and they told me exactly how long they'd wait.

my claim was held up for 6 weeks bc my employer didnt respond! so frustrating. when they finally made a decision they had to pay me retroactively for all those weeks but it was a nightmare waiting

I've been dealing with ESD for years (unfortunately lol) and this happens ALL THE TIME. The system is totally biased against workers!! Employers can delay your benefits for weeks just by ignoring ESD's requests, and then ESD puts the burden on YOU to provide extra documentation. It's completely backwards! When this happened to me last time, I had to send in THREE sets of paystubs and a letter from my previous supervisor before they finally approved my claim. THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED TO MAKE YOU GIVE UP!!

Have you tried using Claimyr to reach an ESD agent? I was in the exact same situation last month - employer not responding, claim stuck in pending, couldn't get through on the phones. I used Claimyr.com and they got me connected to an actual ESD agent in about 20 minutes. The agent was able to see that my employer hadn't responded within the required timeframe and manually moved my claim forward. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. Totally worth it since I was able to get my claim processed instead of waiting indefinitely.

make sure ur still filing ur weekly claims even tho its pending!!!!! i didnt do this when mine was stuck waiting for employer and then when they finally approved it i only got paid from when i started doing the weekly claims again not from my original filing date. big mistake cost me like $1800

Here's what ESD's process is supposed to be, from someone who works with this system regularly: 1. When you file your initial claim, ESD sends a notice to your employer 2. The employer has 10 business days to respond with any objections 3. If they don't respond within that timeframe, ESD should move forward with the claim based on your information 4. However, there's currently a backlog, so even after the employer response window closes, it might take additional time for ESD to process You mentioned you're at 3 weeks now, so you're likely just caught in the processing backlog. Keep filing weekly claims, and try contacting ESD directly. If you can't get through by phone, you can also try sending a secure message through your eServices account, though response times there can also be slow.

Update - I just realized I forgot to mention something important: document EVERYTHING. Keep a log of every time you try to call ESD, every secure message you send, and any communication with your former employer. If your claim ends up in adjudication or appeal, this documentation will be super helpful. In my case, I had to appeal initially (though it got resolved before the hearing) and my detailed records of all my attempts to contact ESD strengthened my case.

anyone know if they backdate payments to when you first filed? like if it takes 2 months to approve do you get all that money at once?

I work in HR and handle unemployment responses. There's actually a valid reason this happens sometimes - we get TONS of claims and some fall through the cracks, especially if the person who handles them is out of office. It's not always malicious! Also, small companies might not even understand what they're supposed to do with the ESD notices.

Thanks everyone for all the help and advice! I took several of your suggestions - kept detailed records of all my call attempts, continued filing weekly claims, and finally used Claimyr to connect with an ESD agent yesterday. The agent confirmed my employer hadn't responded within the timeframe, and they're moving my claim forward! The status has already changed from 'pending employer response' to 'processing' this morning. Such a relief! I'll update again when/if the payments actually come through.

I'm going through something similar right now - my claim has been pending for 2 weeks waiting for employer response. Reading through all these comments is both reassuring and frustrating at the same time! It's crazy that so many people have dealt with this exact issue. I'm definitely going to try the Claimyr service that @Zane Hernandez mentioned since calling ESD directly seems impossible. Also really appreciate the tip about documenting everything - I hadn't thought to keep a log of my call attempts but I'll start doing that now. Thanks for sharing your experience Aurora, and glad to hear your claim is finally moving forward!